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Interview with Dave Becker, Author of The Faustian Host

Dave Becker is an author and artist living in Pennsylvania, trying desperately to avoid all plagues, curses, and monsters. The Faustian Host is his first novel.

Thank you for joining us today, Dave. Can you please start off by telling us a bit about yourself?

I’m an artist as well as a writer. I’ve worked in marketing for decades, doing graphic design as well as copywriting, and a host of other skills that simply make me a fantastic liar.

When did you first get bit by the writing bug?

I’ve been dreaming up various stories and characters since before I could actually write them down. Like many people, I toyed with it for years, but became serious about becoming a published author about 10 years ago. Funny how these things take a lot longer than we plan.

Why did you decide to write stories for the YA market?

It’s probably the market that currently offers the most freedom, variety, and reach right now. Basically, it’s just the most fun. Plus, I wanted to write something that my kids would enjoy reading, which I hadn’t attempted before.

What is your favorite part of writing for this group?

Teens have a passion for everything. I’ve been a youth leader at my church for over 20 years, working with every age group from sixth grade to college, and the kids are infectious. They provide a revitalizing view of the world, and they’re more honest and loyal than oldsters. I’m not sure why we lose that just because we age.

What is the greatest challenge?

I’m an old geezer now (to them) and have to constantly remind myself to make my characters speak, think, and act like teens, not miniature adults.

Can you tell us what your latest book is all about?

Plymouth Rock is bleeding. Day has turned to night. Hundred-pound hailstones level buildings. The small town of Clement seems cursed, and the residents know who’s to blame: the new kid, Tony Marino.

After losing his family and his home, 14-year-old Tony is forced to move from Florida to Massachusetts to attend Kalos Academy, an unconventional school for gifted children. Strange things begin to happen the day he arrives, and soon stories of plagues, monsters, and mystical objects surround him. Refusing to believe superstitions, Tony struggles to explain the occurrences logically, until he comes face to face with a satanic cult determined to bring about the end of the world.

The Faustian Host follows Tony and his friends as they race against evil forces to find Biblical relics hidden around the world that possess unspeakable power. Whoever holds these objects has the power to control the world, or destroy it.

What inspired you to write it?

After reading several paranormal novels, I decided to try my hand at the genre. But after too many unoriginal concepts, I bagged the idea and started to develop the story of a group of gifted kids at a special school. I needed some inciting incident, and for whatever reason, I imagined Plymouth Rock bleeding. That led to other bizarre “plagues,” and the next thing I knew, my characters were dealing with black magic and the end of the world, and I had created a paranormal story quite by accident.

In November I plan to release an adult, psychological thriller entitled Mindfront. And the sequel to The Faustian Host is scheduled to be released next summer.

Do you have anything else to add?

Just in case I’ve worried anyone, rest assured, the world’s not going to end with the strange plagues in The Faustian Host. It’ll be those infernal penguins. They’re coming for us, and someone needs to stop them!